


pining is the worst part

by margosfairyeye (Skittery)



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Crushes, Gen, Pining, Pod Squad (Roswell), Pre-Relationship, Roswell New Mexico Week 2020, Teenagers, cafeteria conversations
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-02
Updated: 2020-11-02
Packaged: 2021-03-09 03:13:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,512
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27357826
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Skittery/pseuds/margosfairyeye
Summary: Teenage Michael, Max, and Isobel discuss the possibilities of their love lives (or lack thereof) in the cafeteria over lunch.-- --RNM Week 2020 Day 1: Fic prompt: “Love is overrated.” & Teen!Roswell New Mexico
Relationships: Isabel Evans & Max Evans & Michael Guerin, Max Evans/Liz Ortecho, Michael Guerin/Alex Manes, Minor or Background Relationship(s)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 57





	pining is the worst part

Michael slid into the seat next to Isobel at their lunch table, dropping his tray heavily. It was the same cafeteria crap as always—the overcooked vegetables and dry sandwich, the dessert that looked like it should have belonged in a biology classroom rather than a lunchroom—but it was food, and it was warm, and Michael didn’t have to pay for it. He shoved a fork full of wet carrots into his mouth and tried to ignore Isobel’s wrinkled nose as she opened her own lunch bag. The closer they got to graduation, the more Isobel seemed to be shrinking into the image of her adopted mother. 

“So, what’s new?” Michael took another bite, trying not to grimace. No one sat with them, not usually, and it was a nice opportunity for a little bit of familiarity in the middle of the day, since they only had a few overlapping classes. In spite of the fact that Michael aced every test he’d ever been given, skipping homework assignments near constantly meant he still wasn’t considered “motivated” enough as a student to get into the AP classes the Evanses were so invested in their children taking.

Isobel motioned across the table at Max, who was doodling in the margins of a book. “Max is defiling school property.”

Michael gasped dramatically and Isobel smiled as Max gave them both a withering look. “It’s a library book and this is a pencil” he said, holding up the pencil in case there was any confusion. “I’ll just erase it before I hand it in.”

Who defaced books in pencil and then erased it? “Max, you are a terrible delinquent,” Michael said, looking around and discreetly sliding the book from Max’s grasp with a nod, leaning across the table to grab it with his hands after a moment. He flipped to the front—it was some old play, looked like it hadn’t been out of a dusty shelf in years. “This book looks like it could use some action, hope you’re at least doodling tits or something.” He flipped back to the page Max had been looking at and groaned. “Seriously? You’re doodling ‘Liz’ with little hearts? That’s just getting pathetic.”

Max looked at Isobel for help and she shrugged. “It’s getting a little pathetic.”

Max frowned and grabbed his book back. “It’s not pathetic. I’m just…biding my time, until the right time to—to make a move.”

Michael snorted. “It’s been like ten years, you’re approaching the limit of acceptable time to pine after someone.”

“Plus, the pining is the worst part,” Isobel said, taking a bite of an apple that Michael absolutely did not covet, even if it did have the right texture for food—unlike his fucking carrots. “Just ask her out.”

Michael nodded, trying to pretend his food had a satisfying crunch to it. “School’s almost over. You’re running out of time to hit that.” Michael raised his eyebrows salaciously.

Max rolled his eyes. “Don’t be coarse.”

“Yeah, Michael,” Isobel said, teasing, “don’t you know that Max is  _ in love _ with her? Look at the little heart doodles. You can’t put hearts around  _ just anyone’s _ name.”

Michael made a face. “Yeah, okay. He’s in love with her, but it’s a mistake.”

“See, I might be pathetic, but you’re just depressing, Michael.” Max sighed and closed the book on the table, leaning his arms across it. 

“Or—am I just realistic?” Michael glanced over at Isobel, hoping for her to back him up—Isobel wasn’t nearly as much of a hopelessly pathetic romantic as Max.

“You’re just planning to live your entire life without falling in love?” Isobel asked, the traitor. She glanced over at Max, who was making heart-eyes at Liz across the room—again. 

“Yep,” Michael said decisively. “We’re not going to be here forever.” Michael looked across the cafeteria, following Max’s gaze; Michael’s eyes swept right over Liz, landing across the table from her on Alex Manes, who was laughing at something someone was saying, his face scrunched up in a grin. Michael swallowed. “Getting attached to anyone is a mistake.”

It was convenient, that Liz and Alex sat at the same table, that Michael could stare while pretending to just be criticizing Max’s staring. He watched Alex lift a carrot stick to his mouth and take a bite, licking his lips. Michael gripped his plastic fork tightly enough he thought he was going to snap it in half and turned away abruptly.

“You can’t still seriously think someone’s coming back for us?” Max asked, at the same Isobel said, “You seriously don’t want to get married someday? You don’t want to fall in love?”

They were both looking at Michael with something close to pity, like Michael was the one missing something here, like he was the one who didn’t get it. It made Michael want to hit something. 

Clenching his fist against his leg, Michael looked back over at Alex, just across the room and somehow miles away. Wouldn’t it be easier to try to relate to them, to just admit that he was—against his much better judgement—moving slowly towards something with Alex? 

But he couldn’t, because Michael didn’t like it, because Michael didn’t  _ do this _ . He didn’t _ date _ , he  _ hung out _ —in the back of a truck or on a lumpy couch before parents came home, or in the back of the movie theater, or, on one memorable occasion, under the bleachers during a football game—but he didn’t do the getting-to-know-you crap, didn’t orbit around someone like a fucking moon waiting for feelings to develop. He didn’t fall for a human while already knowing it would only lead to crushing disappointment. 

“Love is overrated,” Michael said, dragging his eyes away. He took another bite of his now lukewarm vegetables, using the taste of it to help school his face away from anything resembling real emotion. 

“God, it’s like if we took both of you and combined you, it might make one person with a normal attitude towards relationships,” Isobel said, rolling her eyes but smiling. 

“Hey, we’re both perfectly normal,” Max asserted, and they looked at him incredulously for a moment before all of them dissolved into laughter. 

“Yep,” Michael said, lowering his voice even though no one was close enough to them to pay attention over the general noisiness of the cafeteria, “perfectly normal alien teenagers.”

Isobel buried her laugh in her vitamin water and Michael grinned at Max, feeling a little bit of tension dissipate. The worst part was that he knew that deep down, Isobel and Max both wanted to be normal, like they couldn’t understand that being something other than human wasn’t a curse. Michael hated being on the fringes of everything, but when the opposite choice was letting himself be molded into someone who would give up on his real family, someone who he would hate from the inside—when that was the choice, there wasn’t a choice at all. It just meant that Michael wasn’t holding his breath for some grand romance, or any other human construct. 

“Look,” Max said, still smiling, “just promise you’re not going to turn down something good because you’re waiting to be beamed up and swept away.”

Michael bit his lip—the sting of it helped him focus, made it easier to stomach the fact that Max had completely given up on the only thing Michael still allowed himself to wish for in the back of his mind. He glanced across the cafeteria again. Alex was standing up, still talking to Liz and Maria, looking down at them as they packed up their lunches. Michael let himself stare for a split-second too long, and his eyes met Alex’s. Alex smiled slightly, uncertainly, and Michael fought the impulse to smile back too obviously, glancing away after a moment, an unfamiliar fluttery feeling in his stomach. 

“Yeah, sure,” he said, looking back at Max, smiling tightly. “But don’t hold your breath.”

“Someday, you’ll be coming to me with a sweeping romantic story, and I’m not going to make fun if you doodle their name in a book.”

Michael smirked. “If I’m ever that far gone over anyone, you have my full permission to make fun of me.”

Isobel grinned. “I’m going to remember that.”

Michael bit back the retort that it wasn’t ever going to happen, so she could remember whatever the hell she wanted. He didn’t want to overemphasize it, because he wasn’t certain that he  _ wasn’t _ going to throw himself over a cliff and hope that fluttery feeling caught him before he hit the bottom. 

No one said anything for a moment—the lunch period was almost over, anyway—and then Max quietly took his pencil and started erasing his margin doodles. 

“Worst. Vandal. Ever,” Michael said, and Isobel erupted into giggles. This was better, firmer ground. He resisted the urge to look across the room again, knowing Alex wasn’t there anymore. Michael nodded to himself, listening to Isobel continue to give Max shit, and took another bite of his terrible food. 

  
  
  
  
  
  


**Author's Note:**

> Come say hi to me on tumblr - [my rnm sideblog :)](https://ineverlookavvay.tumblr.com)


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